A real couple
by pretty-little-harding
Summary: This started off as a one-shot. After finally being out in the open, Aria and Ezra share a morning of peace.. this is the story of how they grow as a couple. With everybody knowing about their hidden relationship.
1. Chapter 1

**Just some quick thing I wrote today. Could't get the setting out of my head and had to write it. Please keep in mind that I'm not a native speaker. And I don't have a beta reader, yet. **

„Ezra, time to get up:" The only reply Aria got was a low growl before he turned around again and tried to block out the sunlight by throwing his arm over his eyes. Aria reached out to run her fingers through the messy black hair at the back of his head. „Come on, honey. You don't wanna be late on your first day, do you?" She lightly scratched his neck, knowing that that he couldn't resist her when she touched him like that. But instead of turning around to face her, he slightly angled his head to give her better access to his neck and started purring like a cat. She chuckled at his childish side and got up, slowly peeling the covers from his body leaving him without his warm blanket. „Not fair." he complained, his voice rough from sleep. „I tried the fair way first but since your're acting like a child on the first day of school I had to take drastic measures. Plus, I'll have to leave soon 'cause I'm meeting up with the girls before heading to school together. So, get up now Mister before you'll get to know my mean side."

Smiling to herself, she walked back into his kitchen area. The early morning sunlight that came through the blinds warmed her back and the wooden floor felt warm against her bare feet. After she got herself another cup of coffee she snuggled back on the sofa still dressed in one of Ezra's old Hollis sweaters. She loved the feel of the fabric against her bare skin and it still held Ezra's familiar scent. She sat her cup on the table and spread her school books around her. She still had some Algebra homework left from last night and had a hard time focussing on the various tasks their teacher had assigned.

Time seemed to pass slowly and she only looked up from her work when she heard Ezra's laugh. She saw him standing in the bathroom door, his hair still dripping from his recent shower and only dressed in a towel that he had tied around his waist. Small water droplets fell from the tips of his hair and formed puddles all around his feet. She could have stared at him for hours but he broke the tension by walking back to his closet to get dressed for the day. „Did I ever tell you that you look kinda cute when you're frustrated?" He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at her. As soon as he turned around again she got up from the couch and tiptoed over to where he was standing. She wrapped her arms around his waist and put her head on his back, her cheeks only reaching up to his shoulder blades. He smelled of soap and aftershave and the typical scent that was just his. A scent she couldn't describe. He turned around without breaking her embrace and put his arms around her petite body, his head came to rest on the top of her head. She lifted her head from his chest and looked into his eyes.

„Perfect." she whispered and he raised an eyebrow questioningly. „You, this, just being here with you." She snuggled back into his chest and he tightened his embrace because he knew that she felt safe when he held her like that. He didn't have to say anything, hugging her like that said more than thousand words.

In the last weeks their relationship had been put to the test. After telling her parents about her relationship with Ezra - leaving out the that part where they were already seeing each other while he was her teacher - they had argued a lot. With each other and with her parents. They had to show them that they were equals in this relationship because their first worry was that Ezra was taking advantage of her. They had tried to break them up but ever since they realized Aria was being her usual stubborn and noticing that she wasn't willing to risk her relationship with Ezra just for the sake of keeping the family peace they had slowly come around. At least that's what it looked like.. they still tried to calm themselves by thinking that the age difference would break them up sooner or later.

Nonetheless, they had invited Ezra over for dinner, mainly to see how the couple interacted. What they saw was a couple madly in love with each other. A couple that was always touching and glancing at each other. Loving gestures passed between them even if it was just Aria's hand on Ezra's knee to calm him down or their fingers interlacing when they spoke about how they met. Once in a while Ezra would tug a lose strand of Aria's hair behind her ears or would place a hand on the small of her hand. As soon as they though that nobody was watching them they shared a passionate kiss. Ella chuckled as she saw them kissing. They shared the same interests and besides the fact of their age difference and him being her ex-english teacher there was nothing bad she could think of her daughter's relationship. This was so Aria. Aria knew that they had her parent's blessing when they allowed her to spend the night at Ezra's place. They even spared her from their usual „Don't do anything stupid"-talk.

All those thoughts crossed Aria's mind while she was safely wrapped in Ezra's arms. For the first time in weeks, she felt at ease. „A Penny for your thoughts." Ezra whispered, breaking her train of thought. „I'm just happy everything turned out to be okay. With my parents, I mean. It feels like we can finally be a real couple. Without all the hiding and sneaking around." „We are.." he sighed „..Just like everybody else.. hey, wanna celebrate tonight? I wanna take you out for dinner. To a nice restaurant." Aria saw his boyish smile and smiled brightly. „I'd love to." They wouldn't care about what people thought about them. They were in love.


	2. Getting ready

**Thanks for the reviews on the first chapters :) This chapter is basically just to fill the gap before I'll write about their date/night. Enjoy!**

Aria had spent the whole day preparing for her date with Ezra, mainly because Hanna had talked her into getting a whole new outfit for the special night. She had given in when she thought of the dresses she had in her closet - most of them seemed dull and plain. Ezra had texted her earlier that he would be at her place around 6pm. She didn't know where he was taking her, but since 6pm was kind of early she guessed it would be out of town.

She blushed when she thought of the awkward moment when Ella had asked her at what time she would be back. Her mom was clueless about the lacy black underwear her only daughter had purchased earlier that day - something not even Hanna knew about. And Aria intended to keep it that way or otherwise Ella would never let her stay at Ezra's again. So instead of telling Ella about her real intentions, she made up something of „..it will be late..don't want to keep you up waiting for me.." Using her best puppy dog eyes impression, she asked Ella if she could stay at Ezra's apartment again. „Please say yes, mom, please." she pleaded and Ella had no chance but to say yes.

Now, Aria was standing in front of her mirror applying a last coat of mascara before she finally put it in the small make-up bag that was sitting on her bed, ready to be packed into the duffel bag she had packed for the night. She smoothed her black dress for a last time. It fell mid-thigh and would be considered plain if not for the lacy details that accentuated the low neckline. Additionally, she had tied a bright red sash around her waist that matched her favorite red heels and made the whole outfit more Aria-like. Her curled hair was tied into a loose ponytail with only some strands of hair framing her face. After putting on some earrings she let out a small huff of air and for the first time she realized just how nervous she was. „It's just Ezra" she muttered to herself. But it wasn't „just Ezra". It was her perfect, generous, handsome, adorably and sometimes clumsy Ezra and she wanted to be perfect for him. Little did she know that the man that was now standing outside the door had muttered a similar sentence to himself about fifteen minutes ago. She heard the door bell ringing and soon afterwards Ella called her down „Aria, Ezra's here." After taking one last deep breath, she grabbed her purse and duffel bag and began her way down the stairs.

Ezra was still talking the Ella when he heard Aria come down the stairs. He looked up to look at her and the only word that left his lips was a simple „wow". She blushed and made her way over to where he was standing. „Thank you." she whispered and he leaned down to place a small but lingering kiss on her cheek. „You don't look half bad yourself, mister" she giggled and pointed to his tie „and we match." He had chosen to wear the tie she had given him for their secret museum date some weeks ago. „Ready to leave?" she looked up at him and noticed the awestruck look on his face. He blinked a few times before he reached into his pockets just to get out his small camera. „Ella? Would you mind..?" he shyly asked and handed Ella the camera when she nodded. Ezra wrapped his hands around Aria's waist to anchor her body to his, before he put his chin on the top of her head. The second picture Ella snapped this moment was the sneaky kiss Aria placed on Ezra's lips right after the picture was taken and when she thought her mom hadn't looked at them. Years later this was the picture that would stand on his desk at university and on her nightstand.

„Okay, now I'm ready to leave." Before they could leave, he had to promise Ella to take care of her daughter and to send her a message when they got back to Rosewood safely.

He linked his fingers with Aria's, grabbed her duffel bag and together they made their way to his car. „Where are you taking me?" Aria inquired. „Not going to tell you. All I can tell you is that we're going to Philly but I won't tell you where exactly." He placed a small kiss on her forehead before she got in his car and giggled when he saw her annoyed look. She hated surprises but he knew she would love this one.


	3. Chapter 3

**I might have to change the rating on this story.. but I'm still a little unsure how to write about ,that stuff' since it's kinda hard if you're not a native speaker. I don't want it to sound cheap.. so you'll just have to stay tuned. **

Dinner had been perfect. He had taken her to a nice italian restaurant in one of the quieter parts of Philadelphia where they wouldn't be distracted by the bustling town and where they could enjoy their alone-time how Aria had dubbed it several weeks ago. Ezra chuckled when he thought about that specific afternoon when she had come to his office. He remembered the mischievous smile on her face and the way she had thrown her top right across the room.

He looked at her now. With her lips slightly parted, she sang along to some random song on the radio. Her head was leaning against the cold glass of the car window and her eyes were closed. „What are you thinking about?" he asked. Not opening her eyes are shifting in her seat, she sighed and answered quietly. „How I don't want this evening to end. How I missed spending a whole evening with you. How much I love you.." With that last sentence, she opened her eyes to look into his eyes, to see how her words affected him because she knew she always said things that left him somewhat speechless. Tonight was not different. Wordlessly, he took her hand and placed a soft kiss in her palm before linking his fingers with hers. No words were needed because her thoughts mirrored his.

For the first time she noticed how much his apartment had become her apartment, too. Various items of clothing were scattered around the couch and his bed and the bathroom had been taken over by her colorful nail polish and make up. The scent that filled the small room was a mix of his and hers. It's weird how the scent of two completely different people forms a new one as soon as they lived together. A scent that would be theirs and now one else's.

Aria took of her coat and made herself comfortable on the couch. The two glasses of wine she had for dinner - the waiter hadn't even bothered with asking her if she was 21 - were buzzing through her veins and she felt lightheaded. It wasn't just the alcohol - it was also the excitement that settled deep into her stomach because she knew what she wanted to do tonight, what she planned to do tonight. Ezra slowly made his way towards where she was sitting and she shifted so she could snuggle up to him and let him wrap his arms around her. He kissed her forehead as she leaned up to look at him. „Wanna watch a movie? I don't really want to go to bed now and we get to sleep in tomorrow." „Mhm.." she stretched her legs and shifted on the couch. „but bed would be awesome.. I'm actually quite tired. I was the one who had to go to school early today, remember?" She grinned at him and saw how he tried to hide his disappointment, not knowing what she was really up to. „aww... don't look at me like that.." she turned around and sat on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. „Like what?" he kissed her gently. „Like I killed your hamster or suggested you'd spend another evening with my dad and brother to watch some football game." She how how he cringed at the thought of that evening. It hadn't even been Aria's idea but his own.. he thought that he should somehow bond with her family.. He lost his train of thought when he felt Aria's light kisses on his neck and jawline. „Didn't you say something about how you wanted to go to bed and sleep?" he quietly inquired, trying not to interrupt what she was doing. „I said bed, not sleep." she answered between two kisses she was now placing on his collarbones whilst unbuttoning his shirt. He angled his head to look at her face just to see that this was going where he was thinking it was. „okay..what you're trying to say is what exactly?". She looked up at him and saw him raise one eyebrow in question. „I was thinking, we could use some alone-time." she quoted herself and laughed at his still stunned expression. Running his fingers through his messy curls, he took a breath before speaking again. „Are you sure? I mean, I won't ever pressure you to do anything you're not ready to do. I know about Iceland..." he paused. Several weeks ago she had told him about her first time.. the one night she spent with some random boy from Iceland after a night in a bar. Taking her face into his hands, softly stroking her cheek with the pad of his thumb. „I am. completely. sure." She looked into his eyes and leaned in to kiss him, accentuating every word she said with a single kiss. „I mean.. this isn't just something you wanna do because we're finally out in the open, right?" Sometimes it was annoying how considerate Ezra was, always making sure she was okay, so she just stood up and tugged him along, leading him back to where his bed stood. She finally finished unbuttoning his shirt and slipped it off his shoulders, gently placing both her hands on his warm chest. „Does this answer your question." „It does.. but you have to tell me when you change your mind..." She silenced him with a rough kiss, shedding his last doubts that this was something she was just doing because he might want her to do..


	4. Chapter 4

As he lifted her up, she wrapped her legs around his waist, finally being face to face with him. Her dress lay crumbled beside the couch but she couldn't care less - she was finally getting what she wanted. Ezra kept her safe against his body while he explored her body with his mouth, kissing her neck or softly nibbling on her collarbone. Every once in a while he would stop just to look at her face, tugging a strand of hair behind her ear and seek for her approval to keep on going. She could see that he was unsure about how fast to go so she decided to push him out of his comfort zone and just take matters in her own hands. Unwrapping her legs, she took his hands in hers, slowly pulling him towards the bed..

Ezra's fingers were dancing along her spine, occasionally painting small patterns and unknown figures. When she turned her head to look at him, a content smile was gracing her face. He stopped his movements for a moment, to cup her face in his left hand. „Hey.." he whispered. „you okay?" „Never been better." was her whispered answer and with that she sighed softly and closed her eyes. Ezra continued with his small caresses, knowing that this was her favorite way to fall asleep next to him.

The next morning Aria was woken up by the sunlight that was coming through the unclosed blinds in Ezra's apartment. Ezra's arm was loosely wrapped around her waist, holding her in a comfortably embrace. She snuggled deeper into his embrace and slowly turned around to face him. His eyes were shut tightly as if to block out any light that wasn't welcome. His hair was a big mess and some of his dark brown curls were covering his forehead. Aria reached out the brush them away when Ezra started chuckling in his sleep. She still remembered the first night she met his friend Hardy and had accidentally revealed her relationship with Ezra. She remembered Hardy's stories about his and Ezra's college life, remembered how Hardy had told her about Ezra's habit of laughing in his sleep. At that moment she regretted their age difference. She'd never have the chance to see Ezra at college, never had the chance to see a younger version of himself. Sometimes she wondered how he had been - without the stressful life of a high school teacher and the constant risk of being caught in his relationship with a student. With his messy curls she could imagine his younger self - she knew his hair had been longer when he had been in college, but she had never actually seen pictures of that time, except for one that had been taken at his graduation. She made a mental note to ask him about some pictures later on. For now she was content just lying in his arms, listening to his steady breathing. That's how she fell asleep again, only to be woken up some minutes later by the obnoxious ringtone on her cellphone. It was the one she had set for her parent's calls.

„Make it stop." Ezra growled in his rough voice. „I will.. I just have to find it.. it has to be somewhere." Aria shouted from across the room, not caring whether she had clothes on or not. „Hello Mom... or Dad." she said when she finally found the phone, hidden somewhere between the cushions of Ezra's couch. „Yeah..we were up." Ezra could only hear Aria's part of the conversation, but he saw her smirk when she told her parents that they'd already been up. „I don't know..I'll ask him and text you later? Okay? Bye Mom." She made her way back to the bed, grabbing Ezra's discarded dress shirt on the way. „That was awkward.." she mumbled. „What?" „Talking to my mom while I standing naked in your room." „Is that why you're putting on my shirt right now? I have to admit I quite liked the view. Good sight to wake up to. Could actually get used to it.."

She grabbed a random pillow off the couch and aimed at him. „Goofball." She threw the pillow but due to useless sports skills she didn't come anywhere near him which only made him laugh harder. „You won't laugh when I told you what my mom was asking." she mumbled.. „What did you say?" He still tried to catch his breath when he saw her worried expression. „She wants us to join them for dinner tonight. At the Grille." It wasn't bothering her that her mom had invited Ezra for dinner, it was the fact that they'd meet at the Grille, where the whole town could see them. „You're worried about what people will think, right?" She nodded, slowly climbing back into bed where Ezra embraced her and whispered in her ear. „You shouldn't. We're doing nothing wrong. We're just two people who happened to meet at a bar and fall in love. There's nothing wrong with that." He nuzzled his nose in her hair and placed a kiss on the top of her head. „How do you always know what to say to make me feel better." „I don't know.. maybe it's just one of those skills that come with age." She chuckled and remembered what she wanted to ask him earlier. „Speaking of age.. are there pictures of you when you still had long hair? You told me it gets all messy and curly but I've never actually seen it." He sighed. „Please don't make me show you those pictures.. they're embarrassing." She gave him a light shove. „I wanna see them - see you. Maybe I'll change my mind on that whole ,You're my boyfriend'-business. Just kidding.." she added when she saw his shocked expression. „But I really wanna see them. So you go and get those pictures and I'll text my mom about that dinner."

Half an hour later they were both dressed and sitting on the bed, skimming through a photo album that Ezra's college friends had made him when he had left for his semester in Europe. Pictures of him and his friends at the local college bar, playing some billiard or throwing darts. Pictures of a reading they had organized for on of his english classes. And last but not least there were pictures of him when he had taken an acting class at Hollis to see if he was really doing the right thing by choosing a career as a teacher. Ezra had tried to hide those pictures at first because he was still embarrassed about showing Aria pictures of his college life. But whereas he was embarrassed, Aria was in awe, squeeing at pictures of him and Hardy or him at his first day of college, a picture his mom had snapped, much to his dismay. When they were done, Aria turned around and placed a small kiss on Ezra's lips. „Thanks for showing me these. I might tease you about that tongue thing you did in one of those theatre pictures, though." She checked the watch on the nightstand. „I should get going, soon. I got some homework to do and I can't really procrastinate on that since we're going out tonight." Ezra sighed and kissed her once more. „I'll see you around 7.30 I guess. Gonna come over to your house to pick you up if that's okay for you." „Perfect. But now I'm gonna get a shower." She wriggled out of his embrace and made her way over to the bathroom, shedding Ezra's shirt in the process. „Care to join me?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for taking so long to update this fic. Life got in the way, but it'll be easier from now on since I finally have a topic for my doctoral thesis. I'm going to be a PhD student in a few days. **

Ezra had been pacing the Montgomery's front porch for the last 10 minutes. Ever since he arrived there, he couldn't stop the weird feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was ridiculous, he had been there before, they had accepted his relationship with Aria. But there it was, that weird feeling that something bad was about to happen.

„Ezra." he turned around and saw Ella standing in the door frame. „Oh, hey. I didn't know you'd seen me." He smirked at her, embarrassed that she had caught him pacing the front porch like a caged animal. „I heard your car and when you didn't knock I thought I'd check if you were still alive." The expression on her face said all. Ever since they'd been working together, Ella had come to learn his nervous habits. First he'd been nervous because he had to hide his feelings for her daughter and now he had to conceal his insecurities from what might become his parents-in-law at some point. „You can go check on Aria upstairs. Maybe she won't take another hour to get ready if you're there." Ella said with a hint of humor in her voice. She knew her daughter and her habit of taking too much time to find a perfect outfit when she was nervous about something. And the nervousness she had seen in Aria's eyes earlier, matched the look that was evident in Ezra's eyes. „Okay..I'll just go upstairs and see if she's ready." he said, rubbing his neck with his right hand..another nervous habit..

Ella watched Ezra as he went up the stairs and chuckled. She loved messing with him..it was something she had started when they were still working together at Rosewood High. „What got you so giddy?" Byron asked as he came out of the kitchen already ready to leave for dinner. „Nothing. Just messing with Ezra. It's kind of funny how nervous he is every time he's here." „It is.. and it's pretty easy to make him nervous." Ella turned around to look at her husband who just stood there, grinning. „Don't tell me that's what you do when you see him at work?" „No..no...no.." Ella glared at him and he admitted "...at least not every time I see him."

Upstairs, Ezra softly knocked on Aria's door, trying not to disturb her. He found her sitting on her bed, her legs tucked under her body, still wearing a robe. She was writing something in her journal and didn't bother to look up, probably thinking it was just her mom waiting for her to get ready. Ezra cleared his throat and waited for her to finish her writing. He knew how hard it was to stop once you started writing. Nevertheless, she had to get ready in a few minutes because they had reservations at the Grille and he didn't want to make Ella and Byron wait. „I wonder what the people will think if I show up at a restaurant and my girlfriend's only wearing a robe..it's pretty hard for me to concentrate on anything when I can see those lacy panties you're wearing right now." Normally, he wasn't that forward but the shocked expression on her face was priceless. „Ezra.. what are you doing up here?" „Well.." he walked over to her bed and motioned to her to get up „..your mom thought I should check whether you're already dressed.. which you clearly aren't." She took his hand and he pulled her up from the bed. „And when I saw you sitting there, I thought I could help you getting dressed." He started to slip the fabric off her shoulders, leaving her only in her pair of matching bra and panties. She raised on of her eyebrows, wondering what had gotten into him.. he never was that forward.. „You know.. I would really like to continue this but maybe we shouldn't do THIS here, with my parents waiting downstairs." „Right.. parents.. dinner" He took a step back, retrieving her robe and shaking his head a few times as if he wanted to get rid of a thought. „But we'll always have the night to look forward to." she said, with a teasing smile tugging on her lips, as she walked towards her closet to get ready for dinner.

Later, they were standing in front of the Grille. Ezra wasn't sure what to do with his hands, since this was the first time he and Aria could be seen as a couple in the small town of Rosewood. Some people had their suspicions, but that wasn't the point. Her wanted to take her hand. He wanted to make sure _everybody _could see them. But he wasn't so sure if that's what Aria wanted. Life as a high school student wasn't as easy as life at college was. People were always judging you, your appearance, the things you said and last but not least your relationships. That's why he opted for the safest way and just buried his hands in his pockets which earned him a glare from Aria. „What do you think you're doing?" She tugged at his arm and slipped her small hand into his larger one. „You're mine. And I don't care what people think or do. We did nothing wrong. So you, Mr. Fitz, and I go in there and show them that we don't care."

Dinner was a quiet affair. They ignored the occasional stares and whispers that mostly came from fellow students that went to Rosewood High and therefore knew both of them only as Student and Teacher. Until Byron decided to tell them why he and Ella had wanted to talk to them. „Aria? You know the Cabin in the wood, the one we used to spend our summers at?" „Sure.." she raised one eyebrow and nodded, motioning him to keep on talking. „Well.. your mom and I wanted to ask the two of you if you'd like to spend your holidays there. On one condition.." Aria and Ezra shared a look, not knowing where this was headed. „..we'll let you stay there for free, you just have to fix some things on the house, paint it.." The reaction Byron and Ella had waited for didn't come.. at least not on Ezra's side. He looked uncomfortable, like he didn't know what to think of this. Aria however, didn't seem to notice and happily agreed without further questions. She didn't notice how Ezra's mood changed from happy to hurt and slightly angry... „Aria? Would you like to spend the night at Ezra's?" Ella had noticed Ezra's mood change and decided to give them time to talk.

The walk to his apartment was spend in silence - not their usual comfortable silence. This silence was different, somewhat thick with emotion, almost electric. Aria had problems keeping up with Ezra's strides. He didn't talk, they didn't hold hands.

„Would you please tell me what's wrong?" Aria demanded as soon as she closed the door. „Nothing." He took of his shoes and started loosening his tie as if it was strangling him. „Bullshit." He never heard her using that kind of language and turned around to face her. His girlfriend had her arms crossed across her chest, tapping her foot restlessly. „You've been distant ever since my parents brought up the plans for summer. What's wrong with that? They're trying to be nice, they've accepted you." „You want to know what's wrong? You really wanna know?" His voice was quiet. He didn't want to argue with Aria. This could only end badly cause he knew her stubbornness would get in the way. „You didn't even ask if I had something planned for the summer. You didn't ask if I wanted to take you somewhere nice. It's our first summer together and you just let your parents rule our relationship."

„I didn't know it looked that way to you. What mattered to me, was the fact that we could spend the summer together, without all that small-town life surrounding us. Far away from school and my parents. And yes, I wanted to save money. Because, only last week we were talking about getting out of here. Studying at NYU and getting some nice apartment in the city. Getting married and having a family.." Her voice softened.. „..but I guess we're not on the same page when it comes to that."


	6. A Drop in the Ocean

**A/N. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. For weeks I tried to update this story, but I kinda blocked myself cause I ended the last chapter in a way I never wanted to end it. That's why I decided to just give it another try with a new "set up" so to speak.. time gap, change of scenery.. you'll see what I mean :) **

**As always, the characters are not mine, the song is not mine. The only thing that is actually mine, is my writing. Always keep in mind, that I'm not a native speaker.**

_A Drop in the ocean a change in the weather_

_I was praying that you and me might end up together_

_It's like wishing for rain as I stand in the desert_

_But I'm holding you closer than most_

_Cause you are my heaven_

It had been a mutual decision, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. They had broken up so he could take a job in New York, so he could do the thing he loved most. She had to stay in Rosewood simply because her parents would never let her move to New York with him as long as she wasn't done with school, and to be honest, she didn't want to and he didn't want her to sacrifice her senior year of High School just to enter a new school in New York where she didn't know anybody. It hadn't even been the usual break up. It was a rational decision rather than an emotional one. "Maybe we should take a break..." He didn't even know who said it first. Yes, there had been tears. He had held her for hours, not wanting to let go. It was one of the things he missed the most; just holding her for hours, occasionally stealing a kiss or just burying his nose in her hair, inhaling the mix of strawberry shampoo and conditioner. That's how they had spent most of their evenings, hiding from the world outside. And that's what he was doing right now; hiding. Looking out of the window of his tiny apartment, he could see they people rushing down the pavement, avoiding each other and avoiding the rain. Most of them kept their heads down, following their designated paths. Like tiny trains, never straying from the tracks. Until he had met her, he had been the same. Never straying from the path his family had laid out for him. Graduate from High School, study at Hollis College, graduate with honors and become a teacher. She had turned his life around, had shoved him out of his comfort zone. In a way, he was grateful she had urged him to take the job in New York. For weeks he had been miserable, simply because tutoring High School kids so they didn't fail their finals, wasn't the same like teaching a whole class of them. He loved the discussions in class, loved getting input from them, loved teaching them about writing. High School in New York was different, but not worse. The gossip was the same, the groups were the same. The biggest difference was that she wasn't there.

There had been the option of a daily commute. Philadelphia - New York - 1 1/2 hours by train. Every day. He would've been able to live in Philadelphia, to still see her every other day. But once again, rationality took over. It was just too much when he had lessons to plan and essays to grade. And she was still living in Rosewood and not Philadelphia, her parents were still not okay with her being with him. That's why he was now sitting in his tiny apartment, just staring out of the window. She would've loved the apartment with the window seat. Smiling, he remembered the way she had admired his old apartment when she'd been there for the first time. Yeah, she would love his new apartment. It was ironic, really, that he had chosen this apartment, hoping that she might change her mind and move in with him; that he had chosen the apartment with the biggest windows, so she had enough light for her painting and with the window seat, so she had a place where she could write.

Little did he know, that two days prior, she had been sitting in a similar position, thinking about the same things, missing him the way he did miss her. That's when she had decided to change things. Wallowing didn't help, constantly calling Spencer didn't help, not even shopping with Hanna did help. Everything was fine during school hours, when her mind was busy with solving math problems and reading another Shakespeare drama. Her parents knew something was up and tried their best to cheer her up - movie nights and family dinners. It was when the sun set, and she was sitting on the low window seat in her room, that she was completely miserable. Tokens of their relationship lay scattered around her room. Spoons and darts, Paper bags and books.

Sighing, she got up from her seat and went over to her desk, starting up her laptop. „I miss you." the words he had written on her Facebook timeline some days before were still waiting to be replied to. It was simple. She missed him, too.. a lot. So much that she was actually thinking about running away to see him. After all, the weekend started in two days and she had no plans. A visit couldn't hurt, could it? They had agreed to stay in touch, but after a month, the number of calls had dwindled and communication barely existed. It wasn't just that she wanted to see him - she needed to see him.

That night, decisions were reached, calls were made and bags were packed. Philadelphia - New York - 1 1/2 hours. And just like that, it was friday and she was standing at Penn Station. Rain was flooding the pavements of New York as she walked to his apartment. Not taking the subway might have been a stupid decision, but she couldn't care less about the rain. She had a plan and she was going through with it, not knowing how he would react.

Five blocks away, he decided to dedicate another friday night to grading papers. It wasn't like he had anything else planned or people to meet - most of his colleagues were older than him and the people he went to school with had moved all over the country. It seemed like he was the only one to come back to the city he had grown up in.

His desk was facing another window but sitting there, he couldn't actually see the street, just the apartment building on the other side of the street. That's why he didn't see how she let herself into his building, climbing the stairs to his apartment. Fourth floor. 4a.

When he opened the door, he was speechless. „Hey", she whispered, looking up to him with tear-filled eyes and a small hopeful smile. „I missed you." And with that, he just took a step to close the gap between them, and took her in his arms. Holding her, keeping her warm and save. And he didn't care about the wetness of her jacket and the wetness of her tears. He just held her.

That night, as they both sat on the window seat, watching the people on the streets and watching each other, decisions were made.


End file.
